


The Stats of Swim

by orphan_account



Category: Free!
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-15
Updated: 2014-05-15
Packaged: 2018-01-24 22:25:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1619147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haruka and Rin are in an established relationship of chlorine, fish and fluff, but the course of true love never did run smooth. Light conflict with lots of fluff. Headcanon that Rin studies swimming statistics to feed his competitive nature since he is no longer obsessed with beating Haruka. He still wants to beat all of the records, though.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Stats of Swim

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by a Haruka/Makoto request on the kink meme that proceeded to kidnap Rin and take on a life of its own.  
> Song inspiration: "Pieces of Me" by Ashlee Simpson

“Rin, did you know the United States holds the most records for long course swimming?”

“Rin, did you know the most long course swimming records held by a single person is seven?”

“Rin, did you know…”

This had been going on for three hours. And three hours later, the only thing Rin knew was that he wanted to hold the record for fastest removal of Haruka’s clothes. At least, for the little he was wearing. It didn’t help Rin’s restraint that Haruka wasn’t wearing a shirt and had apparently decided to torture his boyfriend further by donning a pair of Rin’s jeans.

Fuck.

“Rin, did you know the world record for the 50 meter free is 20.91 seconds?”

Rin didn’t think Haruka noticed him slip off his shirt and unbutton his pants, tossing the unneeded clothing onto the floor. Rin didn’t think Haruka noticed the playful way he removed his boxers, flinging them at the headboard where they caught on the post nearest to Haruka’s head. Rin didn’t think Haruka noticed when he reached across his lap to retrieve the lube from the side table drawer _completely naked_.

“And the world record for the 100 meter free is 46.91 seconds.”

But Rin hoped Haruka would notice him trying to remove _Haruka’s_ own pants – _Rin’s_ pants, really – and boxers, which Rin had finally convinced his boyfriend to wear when pool time was over. (Apparently, a quickie in the locker room after practice was all it took for Haruka to decide more easily removable undergarments were, in fact, better on certain occasions.) The compromise was a set of sea creature adorned fabrics of which Rin was internally delighted to find Haruka favored the colorful sharks. He stared at them for a moment, appreciating the sentimentality, intentional or not, before sending them across the room via a snap to the elastic band. When Haruka was left only in his birthday suit, Rin straddled his hips, determined to be detected. He shivered when his stiffening arousal brushed his boyfriend’s stomach. Haruka huffed and Rin’s posture straightened in anticipation.

“Oh! These two records are held by the same person. Fascinating.”

Alas, that damn book still held Haruka’s attention, attention decidedly reserved for him. He felt a rush of jealousy, like the bound volume was a mistress, a thief stealing his precious lover’s mind away from him. Haruka was _his_. Part of him wanted to strangle Makoto for even thinking about such a birthday gift, even though the other part of him knew Haruka’s best friend had no ill intentions. However, that wouldn’t stop him from making certain Makoto’s next present was a new pair of goggles or anything else besides a book about _swimming_ , damn it!

 _At least_ , Rin thought dejectedly, _Haru would actually notice me through the goggles._

“Hm. The 200 meter and the 400 meter free records are also held by the same person. That’s quite a feat.”

_Still…_

Rin deemed it half past time to up the ante. He poured a generous amount of lube into his palm and rose to his knees so his hand could sneak between his legs. Without delay, he eased a finger between his cheeks as he braced himself with his other hand splayed across Haruka’s chest. They had only done it the day before so Rin assumed he needed little preparation. He let out an exaggerated gasp as he added second and third fingers, stretching desperately without hesitation. When he brushed his prostate, he couldn’t resist arching his back and squeezing his thighs around Haruka’s hips. Haruka gasped and Rin smiled, believing his boyfriend was finally coming back to him. Rin looked down; Haruka was _aroused_ , after all. (He tried not to concentrate on the little voice telling him it was probably because of the _swimming_ book.)

“Seven minutes and 32.12 seconds for the 800 meter free sounds good, right, Rin?”

Rin’s smile fell into a frown as he tried to keep the tears at bay. Haruka had seen him cry often enough and, damn it, he was going to win this one!

“Don’t you wanna have some fun with _me_ now, Haru?” Rin whispered suggestively as he removed the slippery fingers from his hole and ran his hand along Haruka’s abs and up to fondle his left nipple. It hardened quickly, but that wasn’t enough. Rin felt a droplet slip down his cheek. Haruka only sighed in a way that made Rin think it was because of something else he read in that stupid book.

“Rin, did you know –“

“Damn it, Haru!” Haruka looked genuinely surprised when the book was snatched from his hands and tossed over Rin’s shoulder. It hit the hardwood with a dull _thunk_. “All I want your attention and I can’t even get a fucking passing glance! What the hell?” Before Haruka could respond, Rin’s body rose and came down, firmly encasing his erection with a long moan and a sniffle. Another tear fell, formed more of resentment than sadness. It landed on Haruka’s chest. Rin rode his boyfriend slowly but determinedly, prolonging the sought-after contact. “H-Haru…”

“Rin.” Haruka’s hands were massaging his hips almost remorsefully. They traveled up to grasp his shoulders and pull him down where Haruka’s lips could reach his in a gentle apology. _I’m sorry._ The embrace was unhurried, probably intentional so Rin wouldn’t think Haruka was just amusing him to get back to the book as swiftly as possible. _I love you, Rin._ But it was impossible to be bitter with such tender gestures lavished upon him.

“I love you, too, Haru.” Rin’s smile was back at full force, sharp teeth glinting in sunlight streaming through the open window. He obeyed without question when his boyfriend tapped his left hip. 

_On the bed, on your back. Let me take care of you._

It felt a hundred times better when Haruka reentered him of his own volition and began with a steady thrust. It felt a thousand times better to be able to wrap his hands around his favorite set of biceps propping his favorite person over him protectively, lovingly. It felt a million times better to stare into those sapphire blue eyes and have Haruka staring back.

_Only for you, Rin._

_Suck on that, stupid book!_ It was a fleeting thought as Rin forgot the object completely when his lips were captured affectionately once again.

Though Haruka had maintained an uncharacteristically leisurely pace, they climaxed together more intensely than they had ever before. When his boyfriend pulled out, Rin didn’t have a chance to lament the loss of contact before Haruka laid down next to him only to wrap his arms around Rin’s torso and entwine their legs intimately. Rin breathed in the comforting scent of Haruka’s hair, herbal shampoo with a hint of ever-present chlorine.

“I’m sorry, Rinrin.” Haruka whispered against his neck, using the nickname reserved only for the most private of moments. “Is it all better, now?”

“More than that, _Haru-chan_.” Rin grinned against Haruka’s forehead, knowing his boyfriend could sense it.

“Not you, too...”

Rin just laughed and held him tighter.

They cuddled, falling in and out of consciousness in silence until the blue sky turned orange with the sinking sun. Haruka sat up first and mentioned something about mackerel and Rin swore he was going to wake up one morning with his arms wrapped around a Haruka-sized fish or at least a Haruka merman. He would still love him, though. His stomach growled, enough to get him to even consider leaving the land of soft pillows and warm sheets. He got up to retrieve his clothes when he spotted _it_.

Rin picked up the book, thankful its unexpected flight across the room didn’t damage any pages. He’d feel awful doing that to Makoto and more awful doing that to Haruka. After he had flipped through the pages, he closed it to dust off the cover. When he saw the title, he was shocked.

“Haru?”

“Mm?” Haruka froze, jeans pooled at his ankles, giving Rin his full consideration.

“This is a book about swimming records.”

“Yes, Rin. Weren’t you listening to me earlier?” Haruka asked in a tone of annoyance as he pulled up the jeans and fastened the button.

“Why did Makoto give you a book about swimming _records_?”

“Why not?” Haruka retorted.

“But you don’t care about records.” Rin was utterly confused. Haruka enjoyed the swim for the swim, the freedom, the tranquility water brought. It was Haruka who taught him that just because someone was involved _in_ competitive swimming didn’t mean they could be labeled _competitive_. He groaned in exasperation. “You don’t care about records,” he repeated, trying to find order in his jumbled thoughts.

“You do, though.” Haruka said simply, irritation vanished, taking Rin’s hand in his.

“Eh?” As if this conversation could become _more_ complicated.

“You love swimming records, don’t you, Rin?” Haruka’s thumb rubbed circles on his palm. “Isn’t it customary for someone dating someone else to get to know them better by learning about their interests?”

“Huh?” The pieces started to come together.

“You took that painting class with me even though I know you didn’t enjoy it that much.” Two pairs of eyes drifted to the darkest corner of the room where they both knew Rin had hidden his “masterpiece” behind the sofa. Rin was fully aware that his so-called floral still-life was neither realistic nor appealing, though Haruka had only encouraging adulation for what Rin deemed his Watercolor Nightmare. Still, Rin adamantly refused to see it hanging next to Haruka’s in the living room. “It was really special to me, spending time with you like that.”

Rin finally _understood_. He was speechless.

“Makoto gave me the book because I asked for it,” Haruka provided. “He was just going to buy me another pair of goggles, but when we went to the swimming store and I saw that,” he gestured at the volume still in Rin’s grip, “I thought of you. When you were in Australia, I missed learning a lot about you, so much so that it was hard at first to recognize you when you returned. I knew I needed to catch up on Rinrin 101.” He paused when Rin snorted. “Makoto thought it was a great idea.”

“It was.” Rin thoughts were now organized enough for coherent phrases to travel from his brain to his mouth. “It _is_.”

“Good.” Haruka took the book from him to place it on the wrinkled comforter so he could take Rin’s other hand as well.

“So…you were trying to impress me with all of those stats?” Rin raised an eyebrow, grin spreading wider.

Haruka blushed and the corner of his mouth turned up. He nodded.

Rin grunted, releasing one of Haruka’s hands so he could playfully pinch his nose. “You’re an idiot, you know? If you really wanted to impress me, you know you should have started with butterfly!”

“But I only swim –“

“Free. Yeah, I know.” Rin leaned forward to rest his forehead against Haruka’s. “But I thought this was about me, yeah?”

Haruka could only grin and roll his eyes as Rin’s personality reemerged. He knew that everything was truly okay now. “I’ll remember that for next time,” he promised.

As Haruka motioned to leave the room, likely on his way to the kitchen, Rin held him back with a light tug on their still intertwined hands. “Wait, Haru. I have another question.”

“Mm?” Rin felt a wave of calmness wash over him when he looked into those serene sapphire blues.

“So, now that I know the sincerity behind all of the swimming record stuff, I wanna know something else.” Rin sighed, squeezing Haruka’s hand to punctuate his sentence. “How come when I was practically begging you to fuck me, you ignored me?” He tried to keep the hurt out of his tone, but Haruka noticed and stroked Rin’s wrist with his thumb.

 _Sorry_. “Thought you were just hungry again.”

“Eh?” _Again_?

“The last time you yanked off my pants and shoved your ass on my cock while I was reading was because you wanted me to get up and make you dinner,” Haruka informed unabashedly.

“I don’t recall…”

“It just happened yesterday, Rin.” Haruka rolled his eyes, still grinning. “This time, I just wanted to finish a section before giving into your masculine charms,” he stated as his finger teased the waistband of Rin’s pants before jerking him forward by a belt loop. 

“Oh.” Rin blushed, chest suddenly pressed against Haruka’s. It was probably true, but the only thing he could remember about yesterday was a pair of damn good orgasms in the living room and an unexpected third in the shower. When he digs deeper, he vaguely recollects the taste of a post-coital seafood dinner. “So…I guess we both misunderstood?”

“I guess.”

Rin’s stomach growled. “Does that mean you’ll cook for me now?”

“Anything you want, Rinrin, as long as mackerel is involved.”

“You’re lucky I like fish and I love you.”

*****

After a hearty meal of mackerel and rice, they returned to the bedroom where Haruka turned on the side table lamp and quickly grabbed his book before climbing into the bed. When he situated himself in a sitting position against the headboard, he smiled at Rin and patted the sheets next to him in invitation, allowing his boyfriend to relax comfortably in the crook of his arm.

“Rin, did you know the world record for the 50 meter butterfly is 22.43 seconds?”

“How interesting!” Rin listened as he drew shapes on the taut skin of Haruka’s stomach.

“And the world record for the 100 meter butterfly is 49.82 seconds.”

“And the 200 meter?”

“One minute and 51.51 seconds.” Haruka replied, hand not supporting the book resting in Rin’s hair.

“Think I could beat those?”

“All of them, Rinrin.” Haruka spoke as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.

“I love you, too, Haru.”

**_Fin_ **

**Author's Note:**

> The stats mentioned are accurate to the best of my knowledge.
> 
> If there’s really a swimming superstore out there like the one in _Free!_ that sells a billion and one different swimsuits, it probably has a book like this. I’d like to think it has a tongue-in-cheek title like _2014 Edition: A Complete Collection of Swimming World Records for That Pool Addict in Your Life (Hint: They Probably Smell Like Chlorine)_ or something…


End file.
